When Was the First Super Bowl Played?

By Brian Jones

Super Bowl LVII will take place on Sunday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The game will feature the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Philadelphia Eagles. Fans are excited by the game as both teams are the NFL's best. But for those who are wondering about the history of the Super Bowl, the Chiefs (and Eagles) are no strangers to the big game. 

The first Super Bowl was played on Jan. 5, 1967, and the Chiefs took on the Green Bay Packers. At the time, the Super Bowl was called the AFL-NFL Championship as there were two pro football leagues at the time. Memorial Stadium in Los Angeles hosted the first Super Bowl, and it was the Packers who came away with a 35-10 win. 

The Packers were the Champions of the NFL while the Chiefs were the AFL, champions. The AFL was founded in 1960 and had nine teams when the first Super Bowl was played. The league lasted 10 seasons before merging with the NFL in 1970. The Chiefs were the most dominant team in the league as they won three league titles, including the last one in 1969.

The Chiefs came into the first Super Bowl as the heavy underdogs as the Packers were winners of four NFL titles in the last six years. Over 60 million people watch the game, which was a close battle in the game's early stages. The Packers led 14-10 at halftime but were able to take over in the second half. Elijah Pitts ran for two touchdowns while Bart Starr threw for one to lead the Packers over the Chiefs. Starr was named Super Bowl MVP and would win the award again next year when the Packers take down the Oakland Raiders.

According to the official gamebook from the NFL, the attendance for Super Bowl I was 63,036. The game's start time was 1:15 p.m. local time, and the duration of the game was a little over two and a half hours. The halftime show featured performances from the University of Arizona and Grambling State University marching bands. The first Super Bowl was televised on CBS and NBC, and according to Business Insider, the cost of a 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl was around $40,000.

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